Field of the Invention
The present invention is generally in the area of educational toys for children, and specifically relates to a system and method of teaching phonics involving physical manipulatives as well as software.
Description of Related Art
Children learning to read are often encouraged to use phonics to “sound out” letters in a word. This helps the child understand the sounds made by different letters and thus assimilate the rules of English spelling and pronunciation. Since children are physical learners and respond well to tactile stimulation, many manipulatives exist for the purpose of teaching reading—alphabet blocks, letter-shaped magnets, and other similar things. A child using such toys can learn the shape of the letters by touch as well as by sight and thus learn them better.
Many software games exist for the purpose of teaching children to read, but as mentioned, for optimal learning, it is desirable for such a software game to interact with a system involving physical manipulatives. A need therefore exists for a system that can interact with manipulatives, identify them, and communicate this information to a computing device.